Grant scheme to support the restoration of Scotland’s nature

The Scottish Government and NatureScot, working in partnership with the National Lottery Heritage Fund, with the support of the Green Finance Institute, have announced a second round of a grant scheme to support projects that shape and grow the use of private investment and market-based mechanisms to finance the restoration of Scotland’s nature.

Through the Facility for Investment Ready Nature in Scotland (FIRNS), grants of up to £160,000 will be offered to organisations and partnerships to help develop a viable business case and financial model, to attract investment in projects that can restore and improve the natural environment. The FIRNS will follow in the steps of the Investment Ready Nature in Scotland (IRNS) grant scheme launched in August 2022 to address two of the four major barriers to scaling investment in UK nature identified by the Financing Nature Recovery UK initiative: 

• Limited sources of revenue – Nature is systemically undervalued, and many ecosystem services are public goods, meaning there is no incentive to pay.
• Limited pipeline and scale – Limited capacity in the supply chain mean that projects cannot be aggregated to a scale that would attract investment.

The FIRNS aims to

• value and monetise ecosystem services derived from the restoration of natural capital assets, in a model that will attract and repay investment or support an investment model that can be scaled up and duplicated elsewhere.
• generate social and economic benefits in line with Scottish Governments’ just transition principles as well as provide increased access for people to enjoy nature.

Successful projects will also explore and demonstrate the means to co-create projects and to share benefits with community interests, contributing to a just transition.

Wild Strathfillan, a new ambitious nature restoration project launched in the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, has received substantial funding thanks to FIRNS. The project aims to deliver successful nature restoration work alongside traditional rural industries that underpin the local economy and employ local people – for example, farming, forestry and deer stalking. Funding from FIRNS will enable the project to investigate possible long-term funding avenues and options for project governance.

The lessons learned from FIRNS projects, like Wild Strathfillan, will also influence the National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET) programme, by demonstrating the relevance, value and achievability of responsible, values-led, high-integrity natural capital-based markets.

Applications to the FIRNS grant scheme are encouraged from eNGOs, community groups, land owners, farmers and other private sector organisations, individually or in consortia.

FIRNS is now open for Expressions of Interest. If you are interested then please read our Aims and Outcomes and our Guidance and Eligibility guidance documents and all other documents in the Resources section of the How to Apply page.

To find out more about Wild Strathfillan, including upcoming volunteering opportunities, visit, www.trustinthepark.org/wildstrathfillan or contact Ellie Mayhew on info@trustinthepark.org